On Tuesday, a Dutch court sentenced an Eritrean man to 20 years in prison for running a human trafficking network in which migrants were tortured, and their families extorted. The court said the man, identified as Amanuel Walid, treated migrants “without any humanity” while transporting them from Eritrea to Europe via Libya. The court in the northern Dutch city of Zwolle heard how gang members tortured victims while they were on the phone with their families in the Netherlands, demanding payments to stop the abuse. Maximum sentenceProsecutors had sought the maximum sentence of 20 years, accusing Walid of leading a criminal organisation involved in human trafficking, extortion, hostage-taking and sexual offences. “The court considers that the seriousness and scale of these crimes justify a 20-year sentence,” the judge said.

Source: Ethiopian News January 27, 2026 15:33 UTC